METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR DECODING POLAR CODES

摘要

Coding within noisy communications channels is essential but a theoretical maximum rate defines the rate at which information can be reliably transmitted on this noisy channel. Capacity-achieving codes with an explicit construction eluded researchers until polar codes were proposed. However, whilst asymptotically reaching channel capacity these require increasing code lengths, and hence increasingly complex hardware implementations. It would be beneficial to address architectures and decoding processes to reduce polar code decoder complexity both in terms of the number of processing elements required, but also the number of memory elements and the number of steps required to decode a codeword. Beneficially architectures and design methodologies established by the inventors address such issues whilst reducing overall complexity as well as providing methodologies for adjusting decoder design based upon requirements including, but not limited to, cost (e.g. through die area) and speed (e.g. through latency, number of cycles, number of elements etc).

主权项

1. A method of decoding comprising:
converting a data flow graph relating to a predetermined polar code to a tree graph comprising rate-zero nodes, rate-1 nodes, and rate-R nodes; replacing a rate-R node within the binary tree with a maximum likelihood node when predetermined conditions are met thereby replacing a sub-tree of the tree graph with a single maximum likelihood node.